Automatic regulator mechanism for timepiece



Jan. 7, 1964 Filed May 11. 1961 J. A. VAN HORN AUTOMATIC REGULATORMECHANISM FOR TIMEPIECE 2 Sheets-Sheet l 28 34 29 Z I 36 30 J Z 32 /6Q42 4 I INVENTOR Jbltn A. V1111 Horn.

ATTORNEYS Jan. 7, 1964 J. A. VAN HORN AUTOMATIC REGULATOR MECHANISM FORTIMEPIECE Filed May 11, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ohn A. in. H0221.

BY v flfl 7W ATTORNEYS United States Patent Pennsylvania Filed May 11,1961, Ser. No. 109,357 lltl Claims. (Cl. 58'85.5)

This invention relates to a timepiece with an automatic regulator andmore particularly relates to a timepiece so constructed as toautomatically accomplish regulation thereof when the hands of thetimepiece are set.

Conventional timepieces, such as watches and clocks, are ordinarilyprovided with a regulator which is accessible either from the inside ofthe case or from the back of the timepiece so that the timepiece may beregulated to keep accurate time. In certain types of timepieces,however, such as automobile clocks, the mounting of the clock makes itdifficult to provide a readily accessible regulator which is not alsosubject to undesired tampering, such as by children. In solving thisdifficulty, it has been proposed to provide an automatic regulator whichis actuated to cause regulation each time that the hands of the clockare set to correct inaccurate time indications.

In a certain type of regulator of this nature which has been proposedheretofore it has been suggested that it is essential for properautomatic regulation that some means he provided to insure that theregulation set into a clock at a single setting is limited to apredetermined maximum. As one means of accomplishing this, it has beensuggested to always vary the regulator by a predetermined fixed amounteach time that the hands of the clock are set. One such example of thistype regulator is shown in Rabinow Patent No. 2,542,430. According toanother suggestion of the same inventor (Rabinow Patent No. 2,858,029),it has been proposed to utilize limit means for limiting the magnitudeof change of adjustment for a change of indication within apredetermined period of time to insure that at no time will the changein regulator adjustment exceed this predetermined amount. In conjunctionwith such limit means, this same inventor provides a regulator lockoutso that it is impossible to reregulate during the predetermined periodof time.

As opposed to this prior concept of a limitation on the maximumregulation which may be injected into the clock in a predeterminedperiod of time, the present invention utilizes a system which providesfor unlimited regulation as a non-linear function of clock setting. Thatis to say, there is no limitation on the amount of regulation which canbe injected into a clock at a given setting or a predetermined period oftime with the exception, of course, of the inherent limit of movement ofthe rate regulator itself, but the regulation occurs at a non-uniformrate so that the regulation is effected at a high rate only duringinitial movement of the setting stem and then is eflected at a muchlower rate or at a zero rate until the setting stem has been rotated acertain predetermined amount. At this time, regulation again occurs atthe high rate and the sequence may be indefinitely repeated.

As one advantageous result of this system, it becomes possible for ajeweler or a clock repairman to inject a large amount of regulation fromthe front of the clock without tampering with the regulating mechanismitself. As a second advantage it is possible to correct a regulation inthe wrong direction which has been injected by inadvertently moving theclock hands in the wrong direction. Neither of these advantages ispossible with the limit and lockout systems previously mentioned.

According to the specific embodiment of the invention illustratedherein, the regulating element is connected to the setting elementthrough an intermittent low velocity 3,116,594 liatented Jan. 7, 1964ice drive mechanism. Such an arrangement causes the regulating elementto be driven at a predetermined rate during the period of engagement ofthe drive mechanism followed by no movement of the regulating elementduring the ensuing motion of the drive mechanism. The drive mechanismthen reengages to cause further movement of the regulating element atthe predetermined rate and the sequence is indefinitely repeated toprovide what essentially amounts to an intermittent low velocity drivebetween the setting element and the regulating element. "thisintermittent low velocity drive is reducible to a very simple mechanismcomposed of low cost parts and yet having high reliability whichprovides effective unlimited automatic regulation with the advantagespreviously mentioned. In addition to this, such an unlimited automaticregulation system is readily adapted to existing clock movements sincethe mere addition of a series of inexpensive gear wheels is necessary.

It is accordingly a primary object of the present invention to providean improved automatic regulator for a timepiece.

it is another object of the invention to provide an improved automaticregulator for a timepiece wherein there is no limitation on the amountof regulation which can be injected into the timepiece at any givensetting of the 1311613 and wherein the rate of movement of the regulatorcorresponding to a given increment of movement of the hands isnon-uniform.

It is another object of the invention to provide an automatic regulatorfor a timepiece wherein the amount of regulation corresponding to agiven increment of setting of the hands varies as the hands are set.

It is another object of the invention to provide an automatic regulatorincluding an intermittent low velocity drive between the settingmechanism and the regulating mechanism.

It is another object of the invention to provide an automatic regulatorincluding an intermittent low velocity drive mechanism between the timemeasuring mechanism and regulating mechanism.

it is another object of the invention to provide an improved hold-downspring for use in cooperation with the intermittent low velocity drivemechanisms.

it is another object of the invention to provide an improved hold-downspring for use in cooperation with the automatic regulator.

it is still another object of the invention to provide an automaticregulator which has no limit on the amount of regulation which may beinjected on one setting and no means to lock out the regulatingmechanism for a pre determined period of time but which still providespractical insurance against the injection of excessive regulation.

These and further objects and advantages of the invention will becomemore apparent upon reference to the following specification and claimsand appended drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of an automatic regulator constructedaccording to the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical elevation, partially in section, of the regulatorof FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the improved hold-down spring of the presentinvention.

FZGURES l and 2 illustrate a timepiece having an hour wheel 2 meshingwith a minute pinion 4- and driving an hour hand 5. The minute pinion 4is attached by shaft 6 to the conventional minute wheel 8 and this isadapted to be driven by setting pinion 10. Setting pinion it) isattached to a setting staff 12 adapted to be rotated by a setting knob14. The setting pinion is biased away from the minute wheel 8 by ahelical spring 16 surrounding the setting staii" l2 and seated againstthe dial plate 18 of the clock. The setting staif 12 may be raisedupwardly against the biasing force of this helical spring until thesetting pinion Ztl engages the minute wheel 3 so that the hands of theclock may be set in a conventional manner.

A double gear comprising an upper gear 2%) and a lower gear 22 issecured to a shaft 24 journalled in the clock frame in any suitablemanner which will permit axial motion of the shaft. A tab 26 is struckfrom the upper gear 20 and extends generally toward the dial plate ofthe clock frame. The position of the shaft 24 is determined by an arm 30of a hold-down spring 28.

The hold-down spring 28, as best seen in FiGURE 3, is provided with anumber of apertures 29 which cooperate with suitable tabs struck fromthe dial plate to maintain the base 31 of the spring 28 flush againstthe dial plate. Any other suitable method of mounting could be equallywell used. The ends of the spring 23 are bifurcated as shown at 32 andThe end 32 biases the hour wheel 2 away from the dial plate while theend 34 biases a beveled wheel 36 away from the dial plate 18.

The beveled wheel 36 is connected to a pinion by a shaft The wheel,pinion and shaft are preferably made integrally of any suitable plastic,although they could be made separately and of metal if desired. A pivot41 is provided at the end of the pinion 33 and is suitably journalled inthe clock frame.

A regulating wheel 42 is pivotally attached to the clock frame and has adepending regulating arm 44 which engages the hair spring 46 of thetimepiece in a conventional manner. The hair spring is mounted on thebalance staff 48 of the clock which staff also carries the balance wheel'56. The regulating wheel i2 is provided with teeth 33 which mesh withthe teeth of the pinion 38.

A leaf spring 52 has one end 54 attached to the setting pinion iii. Theother end of the leaf spring 52 is provided with an aperture 56 which ispivoted on a pin 58 mounted in any suitable manner on the pillar plate 62 of the clock frame. The pin 58 is provided with a head 65) to preventthe spring 52 from sliding out of engagement with the pin 59. Thediameter of the aperture 56 is greater than that of the pin but lessthan the head 6%.

The pivoting of one end of the spring 52 rather than the fastening ofthis end is an important feature of the present invention. This pivotingpermits the spring 52 to move through part of its travel under theinfluence of the setting staif 12 without bending. This preliminarymovement before bending permits an accurate determination of just wherethe spring will bend and also contributes to a longer life for thespring.

A cycle of operation of the present invention follows:

When the setting staff 12 is pulled against the bias of the spring 16,it pulls the leaf spring 52 with it in a man ner described above. As thespring '32 travels away from the pillar plate 62, it engages the lowerend of the shaft 24. As the spring '52 continues its travel, it forcesthe shaft 24 together with the double gear 22Z against the bias of thearm fit? of the hold-down spring 28. As the setting stem is pulledoutwardly, the setting pinion it) meshes with the minute wheel At thistime, the double gear has been moved to a position abutting the beveledwheel 36. As the setting stem is now turned to set the hands of theclock, the lower gear 22 has been raised to a position where it mesheswith the hour wheel 2. As the hour wheel is rotated, the double gear isalso rotated so that the tab 26 contacts the beveled wheel 36 and causesit to rotate, thus causing the regulator wheel 42 to be rotated throughthe medium of the pinion As the hands of the clock are rotated further,the resultant rotation of the double gear causes the tab 26 to disengagethe beveled wheel 36. No more regulation will take place until the hourwheel has been rotated sufiiciently to return the tab 26 to a positionwhere it contacts the beveled wheel 36. It can thus be seen thatregulation is provided at a first rate for a predetermined rotation ofthe setting stem, at a zero rate for a further predetermined rotation ofthe setting stem, and then again at the original rate. Thus any desiredamount of regulation may be introduced by turning the setting stem.

When the clock is correctly set, the setting knob is released and thespring 16 returns the setting stem back to its normal position. Thespring 52 is likewise returned to its normal position and the hold-downspring 28 again biases the beveled wheel 36 downwardly. In its normalposition, the upper gear 29 engages the hour wheel 2. Since it isdesired that each new setting of the cloclt will introduce some reulation, it is necessary that the tab always return to its initialposition in which it will engage the beveled Wheel 36. For this purpose,the upper gear 2% is provided with a cutaway portion 23. As the hourwheel rotates, it will rotate the double gear until this cutaway portionis reached. Further rotation of the hour wheel will not effect thedouble gear and the tab 26 will have been returned to its initialposition.

By establishing the gear ratios such that a setting of six or twelvehours correction into the hands of a timepiece is necessary to rotatethe tab 26 one revolution, it is virtually assured that over-regulationwill not occur. That is to say, normal setting of the hands of the clockwould never approach such a large increment nor is it even probable thata child tampering with the hands of the clock would be so persistent asto continuously turn the setting knob in one direction in an amountequal to six or twelve hours. It would also be possible to introducegreater regulation for the same amount of setting stem rotation byproviding a plurality of tabs on the double gear.

It may well be appreciated that with the unlimited automatic regulatorof this invention, excessive regulation is prevented as a practicalmatter, while the intelligent injection into the timepiece of as muchregulation as necessary is permitted. That is to say, there is noarbitrary limit on the amount of regulation which can be set into theclock at one setting of the clock hands, thereby permitting regulationcorrections which are not possible with the limit and lockout type ofautomatic regulation.

At the same time, While unlimited regulation is permitted, the nature ofthe regulation is such that regulation occurs at a relatively high rateonly during a limited predetermined rotation of the setting hands sothat unless the hands are set through a time indication in excess oftwelve hours (or any other predetermined interval), an excessiveregulation is not iniected into the clock. If regulation is againattempted after an initial setting which exceeds this predeterminedamount of hand setting, regulation does not occur.

Where the hands of a timepiece are to be set for a relatively smalltime, such as for instance, ten or fifteen minutes, it is not at alluncommon for a person setting the clock to first rotate the hands of theclock in the wrong direction. With the limit and lockout devices whichhave been previously proposed, this would inject an erroneous regulationand it would be impossible to erase this regulation until after apredetermined period of time has elapsed. With the unit of the presentinvention, however, the injection of an erroneous regulation of a smallamount in this manner can be immediately corrected by moving the handsof the clock in the proper direction.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departingfrom the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The presentembodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrativeand not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by theappended claims rather than by the foregoing description and all changeswhich come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims aretherefore intended to be embraced therein.

This application relates in part to the subject matter of applicationSerial No. 840,373, filed September 16, 1959, and Serial No. 18,425,filed March 29, 1960.

I claim:

1. In a timepiece: time measuring means; time indicating means actuatedby said time measurin means; time setting means for setting said timeindicating means to any position in its time indicating range; rateregulating means for regulating the rate of said time measuring means; apinion engaging said rate regulating means; a beveled disc operativelyconnected to said pinion; gear means including a tab struck therefromand adapted to intermittently engage said beveled disc; said gear meansbeing movable by said time setting means into a position where said gearmeans engages said time measuring means and said tab intermittentlyengages said beveled disc for unlimitedly adjusting said rate regulatingmeans in non-uniform amounts during the time setting operation.

2. In a timepiece in accordance with claim 1, wherein said timepieceincludes: a frame; a pin mounted on said frame; spring means operable tobring said automatic regulating means into engagement with said timemeasuring means; and said spring means being fixedly attached at one endto said time setting means and loosely pivoted at the other end to saidpin.

3. In a timepiece: time measuring means; time indicating means actuatedby said time measuring means; rotatable time setting means for settingsaid time indicating means to any position in its time indicating range;rate regulaitng means for regulating the rate of said time measuringmeans; a pinion engaging said rate regulating means; a beveled discoperatively connected to said pinion; a first and second superimposedgear; said first gear having a tab struck therefrom; means under thecontrol of said time setting means for moving said gears from a firstposition to a second position; said first gear being engageable by saidtime measuring means when said gears are in said first position; saidsecond gear engaging said time measuring means when said gears are insaid second position; said beveled disc being intermittently engageableby said tab on said first gear when said gears are in said secondposition for unlimitedly adjusting said rate regulating means innon-uniform amounts during uniform adjustment of said time settingmeans.

4. In a timepiece in accordance with claim 3 wherein said timepieceincludes: a frame; a pin mounted on said frame; spring means operable tobring said automatic regulating means into engagement with said timemeasuring means when said time setting means are moved into engagementwith said time measuring means; and said spring means having one endfixedly mounted to said time setting means and the other end looselypivoted on said pm.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein: said other end of said spring isprovided with an aperture; said aperture having a dia meter larger thansaid pin but smaller than a head terminating said pin.

6. A timepiece as set out in claim 3 wherein an hour wheel forms a partof said time measuring means, said first gear being engageable by saidhour wheel when said gears are in said first position, said second gearengaging said hour wheel when said gears are in said second position.

7. A timepiece as set out in claim 6 including a dial plate, springmeans fixedly attached to said dial plate, said spring means biasingsaid hour wheel, said beveled disc and said first and secondsuperimposed gears away from said dial plate.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said spring means also biases saidtab out of engagement with said beveled disc, said setting means beingoperative to overcome said bias and move said tab into engagement withsaid beveled disc.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said spring means is an elongatedspring with bifurcated ends and a lateral projection intermediate saidends, said ends and said projection being bent at an angle with respectto said dial plate.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said bifurcated ends bias said hourwheel and said beveled disc and said lateral projection biases saidfirst and second superimposed gears.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,966,720 Henning July 17, 1934 2,071,010 Weberling Feb. 16, 19372,542,430 Rabinow Feb. 20, 1951 2,554,029 Holdman May 22, 1951 2,858,029Rabinow Oct. 28, 1958 2,933,883 Giger Apr. 26, 1960 2,941,349 Lux June21, 1960 2,949,728 Dicke et a1. Aug. 23, 1960 2,976,673 Petters Mar. 28,1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 522,837 France Apr. 8, 1921 787,002 Great BritainNov. 27, 1957

1. IN A TIMEPIECE: TIME MEASURING MEANS; TIME INDICATING MEANS ACTUATEDBY SAID TIME MEASURING MEANS; TIME SETTING MEANS FOR SETTING SAID TIMEINDICATING MEANS TO ANY POSITION IN ITS TIME INDICATING RANGE; RATEREGULATING MEANS FOR REGULATING THE RATE OF SAID TIME MEASURING MEANS; APINION ENGAGING SAID RATE REGULATING MEANS; A BEVELED DISC OPEATIVELYCONNECTED TO SAID PINION; GEAR MEANS INCLUDING A TAB STRUCK THEREFROMAND ADAPTED TO INTERMITTENTLY ENGAGE SAID BEVELED DISC; SAID GEAR MEANSBEING MOVABLY BY SAID TIME SETTING MEANS INTO A POSITION WHERE SAID GEARMEANS ENGAGES SAID TIME MEASURING MEANS AND SAID TAB INTERMITTENTLYENGAGES SAID BEVELED DISC FOR UNLIMITEDLY ADJUSTING SAID RATE REGULATINGMEANS IN NON-UNIFORM AMOUNTS DURING THE TIME SETTING OPERATION.